Why Don't I Hate You?
by eighttails
Summary: Anko has always strongly disliked Kakashi, but now she finds that she can't feel that way anymore. Story takes place when they are teenagers, rated T for mild language and mild violence.
1. Chapter 1

**So I decided to write another story about Kakashi and Anko. Maybe the storyline for this has been done somewhere else on the Internet, but I haven't seen it yet, so here goes! Also, I don't own **_**Naruto**_** or any of the characters. In this particular fic, Kurenai will be 17, Kakashi will be 16, and Anko will be 15. I think this is consistent with the age gaps. Thus, Kakashi will be a jonin (that lucky dog got promoted early!), and Kurenai and Anko will be chunin. **

/

"Did you hear about that mission to flush out Orochimaru's hideout?" Anko asked as she sat down in the dango shop, her brown eyes full of excitement.

"Anko, how did you find out about it?" Kurenai raised a brow; obviously concerned about the way her friend was able to get information on secret missions.

Anko sat back and grinned. "I have my methods. Did you order already?"

"I did. Let's get back to how you were able to dig up those details."

The fifteen year old frowned inwardly. Whenever it came down to Orochimaru, people walked on eggshells around her. It really pissed her off. "If I told you it wouldn't be a secret." Anko sassed.

Kurenai sighed. "Fine. I won't push it. Why do you care so much about that mission?"

"Because I know that bunker. There are human experiments gone wrong. They were kept in cells where they would either kill each other, die from the modifications, or survive, which is probably the worst option." Anko grimaced, her hand drifting to her curse mark.

"I see." The genjutsu specialist seemed like she was going to say more, but their order came.

Anko happily grabbed a stick of dango in each hand while Kurenai sipped her tea. "You sure you don't want any?" she asked her friend between mouthfuls.

"Uh, I'm okay." Not a second after finishing the sentence, Anko swiped up the last three sticks.

They went on for a few more minutes, their conversation moving to much lighter topics.

/

After paying the check, Anko and Kurenai walked out of the stall, still chatting.

"Yo." The familiar voice sent shivers down Anko's spine.

"What do you want?" she snapped.

Kakashi Hatake, unreadable as usual, was standing in front of them.

"A warm greeting from you as always, Anko." He replied lightly. "The Hokage wants to see the three of us." He nodded to Kurenai.

With that, the trio of ninjas went to receive their orders.


	2. Chapter 2

**So how's the story so far? I hope you all like it… I have some it written already. I was going to make it one big oneshot, but then I thought it would be better to break it up. Anyways, here's the second chapter!**

Kakashi was the one to knock on the Hokage's office door. Anko silently steamed next to her friend. That Kakashi, always assuming that he was the leader just because he was promoted to jonin rank when he was thirteen!

"Enter." Came the Hokage's voice. Anko composed herself and walked in with her comrades.

The Third Hokage regarded them with a small smile, but his face quickly grew serious. "I'm sure Kakashi has heard about the most recent mission involving a certain former student of mine."

"Actually, I think the details are common knowledge, Lord Hokage." Kakashi interjected, giving Anko and Kurenai a pointed look.

The elderly ninja sighed. "I suppose that saves me time, then."

Anko had a feeling she knew exactly where the discussion was going, and she was filled with anticipation.

The Hokage stood and looked out of the large window in his office. "Orochimaru was not present in the hideout, but some of his henchmen were still…conducting his 'research'." He paused and looked at the three teenage soldiers to make sure they were following his briefing. "Now for your mission. You must scout the compound for any of the human experiments."

"And eliminate them?" Kakashi asked. His visible eye showed no discernable emotion.

"No, not quite. I want you to confirm that the hideout is empty and then demolish it. If you run into any resistance, I want you to retreat and I will send another team." The elderly ninja turned his attention to Anko, "is that understood?"

"Yes." Was the unanimous answer. Although, Anko was a little offended that the Third thought she wouldn't follow her orders. She rather prided herself on her loyalty.

"I'd also like to remind you that Kakashi is the assigned leader of this cell."

Anko took the liberty of answering, "got it!"

The Hokage smiled absently. "Dismissed."

/

In minutes, the team was leaping through the forest outside of the village.

Anko wondered why the Third let her go on the mission. She knew the answer – even though the Nine-Tails had attacked nearly three years before, and despite the fact that the village was more or less rebuilt, the ninja were still on overdrive trying to reclaim the Leaf's reputation of being the greatest Hidden Village. Not that Anko was complaining.

"…Anko. Anko!" Kakashi's voice jostled her out of her thoughts.

"What?" she snapped.

"I need you to tell us about the building, and if we run into any of the experiments what their attacks are like."

The purple-haired kunoichi remembered the research facility quite vividly despite the fact that parts of her memory had been wiped. "It's not too big, but it's dark. The hallways are meant to confuse anyone trying to infiltrate the base."

"And the mutants?" Kurenai inquired, already thinking of different genjutsu to use.

Anko never had much contact with the poor people who were so unfortunate to be used in Orochimaru's quest for power. "I know for sure that they have enhanced speed and strength, but I doubt they have the mental capacity to perform actual jutsu." She paused, "I thought we're not supposed to fight if we're approached. I mean, I'm fine with that, but,"

"This is purely hypothetical. Besides, if we are cornered, we'll be forced to defend ourselves. You're not afraid, are you?" his voice was so light and unassuming.

Anko nearly flushed with indignity. "No! And I'm not saving your sorry ass if we do have to fight!"

The silver-haired teen seemed to laugh to himself. It was impossible to tell with the mask he wore all the time.

Even so, Anko was interested in seeing the renowned Copy Ninja in action. Sure, she'd been on missions with him before, but those were menial assignments. As much as she antagonized him, Kakashi really had changed. Ever since that Uchiha kid died and gave him an eye, Kakashi stopped being so arrogant.

"Anko," Kurenai whispered, "you're staring." Her friend grinned, biting her lip to keep from laughing.

She realized that she was, in fact, staring at Kakashi. Anko fought the blush rising in her cheeks. Oh **hell** no. Anko Mitarashi does _not _think that way about that pretentious, holier-than-thou asshole! How could she even let that crazy idea into her head?

"You're blushing."

"Not helping." Anko hissed back.

"What are you guys talking about?" Kakashi looked back at them.

"None of your business."

"Right. Anyway, I have the plan for destroying the hideout." He proceeded to give the instructions for carrying out the assignment.

The plan was pretty simple – the three of them were to split up and scatter explosive tags on pillars and walls. When that was done, they would meet at a given point outside of the building and detonate the tags from a safe distance. Anko felt her waist pouch for the sizable roll of paper bombs. Assured she had the required supplies, she relaxed a fraction. One little detail did bug her, though: the mission was extremely easy. She shoved the thought to the back of her mind. _Stay focused! _


	3. Chapter 3

**Here's another chapter! I know it's short, but I thought cutting it off where I did seemed to work nicely. Enjoy!**

/

It was Kurenai who spotted the bunker. She pointed the trio to the ground, where there was an opening into the earth.

Anko was not surprised that the genjutsu that used to surround the area had been dispelled – no doubt by the first team to empty the place. She wondered who had been on that squad to be able to detect such a complicated technique.

Kakashi immediately decided on the rendezvous point. "We'll meet here." He gestured to the entrance area.

From the first step she took in the hideout, Anko was almost overpowered with the wretched stench of decaying bodies with an undertone of musty serpent smell. _Gross!_ She thought.

Without further delay, Anko took off and went down an empty hallway. She could hear her teammates' footsteps get fainter and fainter with every passing second. Reaching into her pouch, she slapped paper bombs along the walls and occasionally passed through rooms to optimize the destruction.

She stumbled upon one holding room, complete with barred cells. The iron rods had to be over ten centimeters around, yet the middle portion was bent out of shape. There were a few rotting corpses on the floor of the cage, probably the cause of the foul odor. Anko didn't bother to look for the cause of death. She scattered tags around the room and continued her part of the mission.


	4. Chapter 4

**Okay! Here's another chapter for you! It's a little longer than the others, so I hope you like it!**

/

Anko emerged from the secluded entrance, noting that she was the first to finish. She checked the surroundings; the forest was quite thick around the hideout, providing extra coverage. The idea that Orochimaru had a laboratory, even a small one, so close to the village that was only recently discovered made Anko uneasy. It was true, the officials tried to squeeze any information out of her when she was abandoned, and her fractured memory didn't help much.

She was beginning to worry for Kurenai and Kakashi – it had been a good five minutes of waiting. Her concern was quickly allayed when she saw movement from the hideout.

"Oh, it's just you," Anko sighed as Kakashi met her at the rendezvous point.

The young jonin didn't respond to her snarky remark.

_Ooooh, he must still be in mission mode _Anko thought sarcastically.

"Where's Kurenai?" her captain asked.

"She should be out soon, I mean, it's not a big place," Anko was cut short by a searing pain stemming from around the left side of her neck. "Argh!" she had to keep herself from collapsing.

Kakashi moved to assist, but Anko recoiled. "I don't need your help." She said through clenched teeth. She could feel a huge presence approaching…or rather, multiple beings coming at them. _What the hell is going on? _

"Anko, are you okay? What's wrong?"

The sound of footsteps alerted them to Kurenai, who was coming from the hideout. "Sorry, I took a wrong turn and," she noticed the atmosphere of the other two, "Anko!"

Anko straightened up. "Guys, we gotta get out of here!"

Kurenai looked worried out of her mind. "What? Why? We still have to,"

"Watch out!" Anko jumped forward, knocking her friend to the ground as a blob of color rushed past where Kurenai was standing seconds before.

The blob landed just meters from the trio of ninjas. It was a human experiment. The creature was purple, with spiky growths on its body and wore a torn up gown. For some reason, its presence made Anko's curse seal throb with agony.

Kakashi had kunai knives in his hands in a flash. "They must have broken free when they raided the base." He deduced.

"Yeah, well, there's more comin'." Anko said. Although she was in a great deal of pain, she still felt the excitement of an impending battle rise in her gut.

"We should fight them off and make a hasty retreat," The black-haired kunoichi suggested, "we have to get Anko away from them."

Anko waved her hand dismissively. "Please. I'm totally fine." She was sure the conversation could have gone on for a good ten minutes, but the mutant attacked hard and fast.

Kakashi took no time in dodging the strike and countering accordingly. Anko and Kurenai joined in and in no time the creature was defeated.

"Let's blow up the place and leave." Kurenai looked Kakashi dead in the eye.

He shook his head. "Anko, how close are the others?"

"Three…two… and," other monstrosities burst through the trees, each with different markings and bodily extensions that made them look less like humans and more like beasts.

The three Leaf ninjas scattered, each taking on a fighting stance. Out of the corner of her eye, Anko saw Kakashi lift up his headband, revealing the Sharingan. _Getting serious are we? _She thought playfully. Another pulse of fiery sensations emanated from the curse mark. "Damn." The mark wouldn't make things easy for her, but Anko didn't always do things the easy way.

Off to the side, Kurenai engaged a cluster of mutants, capturing them in a genjutsu and attacking while they were incapacitated.

The purple-haired chunin reached into her pouch, grabbing specially prepared kunai with greased wire attached to the loops. She threw each dagger into a tree, evading the monsters as she went. Soon, Anko had woven a deadly web of wire, with the loose end of the line in her teeth. She quickly wove the correct hand seals before saying, "Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!" she breathed out a roaring inferno that zipped up the line; burning anything and everything it came into contact with, including some enemies that strayed too close.

To Anko's dismay, the fire didn't seem to do the trick. It slowed them down and probably seriously injured a few, perhaps mortally wounded others, but she wasn't satisfied with the damage. She thought back to the very first mutant that attacked them. They'd killed it with quick, lethal blows giving it no time to heal itself.

A piercing shriek sounded, alerting Anko to an incoming monster charging in her direction. She moved to dodge, but a wave of pain washed over her, resulting in her stumbling only enough to avoid the full brunt of the assault. The creature's claws raked through her shirtsleeve and the fishnet material covering the upper part of her arm. _Damn it! Stop choosing the worst times to act up! _She cursed to herself, clutching her arm. As she pulled her hand away, she saw the blood covering her palm.

A familiar feeling of bloodlust bubbled to the surface of Anko's mind. She grinned despite the situation, licking some of the coppery-tasting liquid from her hand. "You're gonna regret that." She growled.

After that, there were no more words to be said. If there was one thing Anko learned from the accursed snake sannin that she was actually grateful for, it would be the ability to tap into an almost instinctive state of mind, where fighting was second nature. Anko didn't think about where to move; she allowed her subconscious to make her react to each strike and reply with her own counter.

A blaring series of high-pitched chirps resonated through the area, loud enough to shake Anko from her deadly calm state. "Huh?" she glanced to the source of the noise to see Kakashi crouched with a brilliant bluish-white light surrounding his hand.

"Chidori!" Kakashi rushed the creature, impaling it and moving to any other being within meters of the first victim.

Unfortunately, the short distraction was enough time for something hard and powerful, akin to a rock wall, to slam into Anko's side, causing her to go flying several meters into the base of a tree. She saw black spots dancing in her line of vision, and she was quite sure she'd be hurting for a while afterwards, but oddly enough the pain was enough to dilute the mind-numbing agony of the curse seal. The mutant that rammed into her was closing in fast.

/

** I realize this ended suddenly, but I hope you liked it. To those waiting for my Harvest Moon story, don't worry – I'm working on it! **


	5. Chapter 5

"Chidori!" Kakashi was on the fiend in an instant, punching through its chest with his lightning-cloaked hand. He turned around, his breathing slightly labored. "What was that you said about not saving my sorry ass?"

Anko bristled. _Nope! Still an arrogant asshole. _"I was doing fine until you cut in! You broke my concentration!" She got up and brushed herself off. It didn't feel like she broke anything. She was still wobbly from the impact, but she refused to show it. "Go and help Kurenai or something. I can handle myself."

Kakashi exhaled in an exasperated manner. "I guess this is your way of expressing gratitude?"

"Shut it. We still have work to do." She brushed past him only to find out they weren't at their original location. _Jeez, how hard did that thing hit me? _The hot-blooded chunin started off towards the hideout until she felt Kakashi grab her wrist.

"You're hurt." He gestured to her bloodied arm.

"Really? I hadn't noticed." She wrenched her hand away from him. "It's just a flesh wound."

The silver-haired teen was clearly too tired to argue any further. Anko suspected the flashy lighting technique drained the majority of his chakra. She used his lack of energy to go back and help Kurenai. She knew her friend was excellent at genjutsu, but her stamina levels were not very high, which was worrying.

Kakashi caught up to her. "I'll back her up, you hide and bandage that laceration."

"Okay, okay, I will." Anko took out a roll of bandages for emphasis. Kakashi gave her a skeptical look. "Just go!"

Anko waited for a few seconds until she pursued her captain. _Like hell I'm gonna stand by and watch! Nobody makes me sit still while they get to have all the fun! _She hid behind a tree just short of where her teammates were. She could hear the sounds of punches and kicks landing on hardened skin. Anko risked a peek to see what was going on.

She saw Kurenai propped up against a tree, trying to stand up with what appeared to be an injured ankle and a nasty-looking gash above her right eye along with cuts and forming bruises all over her body. Her friend looked exhausted. Kakashi was beating back a monster with only taijutsu, using the Sharingan to anticipate the next blow. _Why doesn't he use that lightning move? _Anko's thoughts were interrupted as she spotted something the Sharingan could not.

A mutant was sneaking up behind Kakashi, as he was preoccupied with his opponent. Anko felt dread settle in her gut. She was quite a ways from where Kakashi was, and Kurenai looked too injured to be able to defend anyone but herself. _I still have to try! _Just because Kakashi was not her favorite ninja in the village did not rule out the fact that he was her comrade.

Plus, she couldn't let him die without saving his sorry ass even though she'd promised not to.

She stood up shakily. The shock and adrenaline from her previous battle had worn off for the most part, and the scalding pain from the curse mark pulsed through her body. _I need more chakra. _Anko knew the curse seal had been draining her chakra ever since it started hurting – the cost of keeping it at bay. The only way to make it stop was to get away from the battlefield or to give in. The first option was out of the question. Anko felt a strange sensation, like she could take on an army if she would only embrace the power the curse seal possessed. Even so, there was no telling what would happen if she used the seal. Her desperation left her no choice. _I gotta save him. _

A rush of dark chakra flooded through Anko and she sprang into action. In the blink of an eye, she bounded across the forest to the hidden assailant and punched it through a number of branches. She didn't bother to see if it was dead – she had to slaughter more. _**Yes, I need to destroy…kill! **_That strange thought crept into her head. _NO! _Deep violet chakra swirled around her. She looked at her left arm. Black flame-like markings had spread to her elbow. Her body felt like it was burning from the inside, like acid eating away at her mind and body.

But the power was…exhilarating. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. _I have to finish off those monsters. _It was a good thing Anko regained control over herself, because Kakashi was getting double-teamed and Kurenai was cornered, though she had her attackers ensnared in an illusion by the looks of things.

"Argh!" Kakashi groaned as he leapt away from one blow, only to barely dodge a second. The two mutants were about to take advantage of his disorientation.

"Striking Shadow Snakes!" Anko unleashed snakes from both of her sleeves, which wrapped around her prey, binding them tightly. She yanked her arms back with inhuman strength, pulling them into the kunai she held. Their blood flowing onto her hands filled her with a twisted joy.

Kakashi whipped his head around to look at her. "Anko! I thought I told you to," he cut himself off when he got a good look at her. His eyes didn't show fear, but something different, something Anko couldn't place her finger on at the moment in her current state of mind.

"Screw that, Kakashi, I saved your sorry ass!" she laughed triumphantly, ignoring the agony that was plaguing her. That said, she moved on to finish off the paralyzed victims of Kurenai's genjutsu along with any remaining experiments left on the battlefield.

It was pure ecstasy extinguishing the puny lives of lesser beings. _Wait – that's not like me. Get a freakin' __**grip**__! _Anko needed to suppress the curse seal again, but she felt trapped. Her body refused to respond to her commands _Come. ON! _A final shove of willpower forced the foreign energy back.

When she in full control of herself, Anko realized that someone had an iron vice-like grip on her wrists. "What the," she saw Kurenai pressed up against her tree in a defensive stance. A quick glance behind her and Anko saw Kakashi restraining her. He let go after confirming she was out of her trance.

"Are you okay?" Kurenai asked worriedly.

"I think _I_ should be asking _you_ that question." The purple-haired kunoichi replied. Everything was such a blur. She felt extremely fatigued after the rush of chakra left her. "I don't feel so well, guys." Anko was tempted to kneel for just a moment, to catch her breath, but not in front of Kakashi.

The Copy Cat Ninja moved to support her, "I've got you,"

"No way in hell, Kakashi," Anko backed away, "besides, we have a mission to finish." If anything, Anko was more concerned about the health of her friend. And Kakashi.

Kurenai nodded in agreement. "She's right."

The trio slowly lengthened the distance between themselves and the condemned building. They were exhausted and injured, making the small trip more tedious than it should have been.

"Are you two ready?" their captain inquired.

"Yes,"

"Yeah, yeah, let's get this over with!"

Each ninja made a hand seal to activate the explosive tags they'd placed beforehand. Seconds later, the dull sounds of the tags detonating reached their ears. The chakra it took to activate the bombs forced Anko to her limit.

Kurenai let out a relieved sigh. "Mission complete."

Anko's world began to spin wildly; dark patches broke up her vision. "Awesome. Hey, you guys see black spots too?" It hit her – she was losing consciousness - _aw crap! _

Then she collapsed.

/

**How was that? I know - I'm not that good at writing battle scenes. Did this chapter move too quickly? ****Oh, and I based each character's skill sets based on the First Data Book, and I scaled even those stats down since this would take place before the actual series. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Whew! This is the last chapter for this fic! Thanks to all of you who read this! Have no fear – I'm pretty sure there's going to be more Kakashi and Anko romance going on later! Please give me your feedback!**

**/**

When Anko woke up, she noticed that she was pressed up against something warm and solid. Her eyes felt heavy and she had the worst headache ever. On top of everything, her whole body hurt – like she'd fought with a mountain. And lost.

"Oh? You're awake?" came a calm voice. The voice sounded like it was extremely close to her…almost directly above her head… She could even _feel _the vibrations of the sound…

"Please tell me this is a nightmare and that you aren't holding me in a compromising manner," Anko mumbled up at the silver-haired shinobi. She'd figured out that he was carrying her bridal style.

"This is a nightmare." The Copy Cat Ninja chuckled. "You should go back to sleep. We aren't far from the village."

"No…I can move. Let me go you," but her eyes were closing before she could finish her insult.

She dreamed about why she hated Kakashi Hatake so much…

_Anko walked out of the Leaf Hospital, another therapy session over and yet no memories to show for it. It was so frustrating! No matter how much the ANBU interrogators searched her subconscious, they could never find any memories from chunks of the past year. _

_ She walked through the streets, heading for the training fields. With no mentor, Anko often trained herself. She yearned to reach out and ask others to practice with, and normally, no, before Orochimaru ruined her life, she would have marched up to another ninja and demanded a spar. Now, Anko didn't know how others would handle it. She resigned herself to individual training, unless Kurenai was free. Kurenai was older, so she had more missions to do. Anko knew the Hokage wouldn't let her go on any missions yet, because of her situation. _

_ Anko felt so alone. _

_ Finally, she reached her destination only to find that another team had gotten there first. She looked around and saw that the squad's sensei hadn't showed up yet. It was silly of her to worry about getting shooed away, but still. She ran up to the trio. "Hey! Can I train with you?" _

_ One boy turned around. He wore orange goggles and the crest of the Uchiha clan was sewn on his shirt. "Who're you? Oi! Kakashi, who's that girl?" he nudged the silver haired teen next to him. Anko recognized him as Kakashi Hatake, two years her senior, son of Konoha's White Fang. He'd definitely be a good training partner. _

_ "Don't bother me, Obito," Kakashi muttered angrily, but he looked where Obito was pointing. _

_ Anko stood in front of the group, exuding confidence. "I'm Anko and I wanna spar with all of you!" _

_ Kakashi stalked up to her. "I know who you are. You're that traitor girl who helped Orochimaru." He growled. The girl in the trio looked very uncomfortable, like she wanted to say something, but held her tongue. _

_ Anko was taken aback, but not for very long. She got angry. "What did you just say? I'm not a traitor!" _

_ "No, you're worse than a traitor. You're treasonous scum. If you have any once of loyalty to the village, you should kill yourself." _

_ "Kakashi, don't be so harsh on her. She's only eleven. She didn't know any better. Right, Rin? Rin?" said Obito. He looked to his teammate for backup, but she still said nothing. _

_ Kakashi ignored his squad member. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?" _

_ "I don't have to prove myself to you." Anko spat. "You don't know me." _

_ "I don't need to know you to know that Orochimaru branded you with an evil mark capable of giving you dark powers. And I certainly don't need to know if you'll use it or not." _

_ "Take. That. Back." Anko hissed, her rage nearing the boiling point. "How dare you question my loyalty?" _

_ "Let me make myself clear. If I ever see or hear about you using that mark, I will not hesitate to end your sad excuse for a life." Kakashi threatened. _

_ That was it. "Why you," Anko made for a punch to Kakashi's masked face. _

_ "Whoa, there." A flash of yellow gently pushed Anko backwards. "Let's not take this too far." The Yellow Flash himself appeared. _

_ Anko was confused. One second she was about to deliver sweet justice, the next she was a meter away from her intended target. _

_ "Sorry I'm late. I didn't know we had one more joining us." Minato said. _

_ Kakashi glared at Anko. "We don't." _

_ "Yeah, I was just leaving." Anko spun on her heel and stormed off. She knew one thing for sure: she would loathe Kakashi Hatake for the rest of her life. _

/

When Anko came to again, she was in a hospital bed, dressed in hospital clothes. Most of the pain was gone, though she still felt tired and bruised, with a dull yet bearable throbbing in her head. The cut on her arm was a pale, jagged line on her skin. Anko was very grateful for medical ninja. She looked around the room and saw someone had left a flower in a vase. Anko reached for the attached note and scanned it quickly. It was from Kurenai. _She must have healed up already _she thought. _Good, I didn't hurt her when I went nuts. _

"You're up again." Came a smooth voice. Anko nearly jumped out of her bed. She hadn't noticed Kakashi sitting in the corner of the room. He had a few wrapped injuries, but looked fine otherwise. He brought a chair to the edge of her bed.

"Why are you here? Come to keep that promise you made?" she sneered. "And what a way to do it, huh?"

Kakashi looked away.

"Now's not the time to wimp out, you know. Go on, try me."

"You remember that?"

"Why would I forget? One more person watching and waiting to kill me doesn't make much of a difference. I mean, I already had ANBU monitoring my every move for the year I came back to the village," she paused, her bitterness boiling over, "but I'd expected something different from a prodigy like you. I thought you would be able to see past who my sensei was."

Kakashi ran a hand through his unkempt silver hair. "I was in a bad place at the time. I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions."

Anko just stared. Did he think that a simple apology would undo the personal hurt he'd caused her, and the subsequent distrust she faced from the older shinobi? _Well, he's got another thing coming if he thinks an "I'm sorry" will work! _She thought hotly, though the pathetic look on his face (or what she could see of it) made her want to believe him. "Jumping to conclusions? That's an understatement."

"It is, but there isn't much more I can say to you."

"Then why are you here?" she met his gaze steadily.

"Let me finish my piece and then you can kick me out."

"Fine, let's hear it." Anko wiggled around on the bed to make herself more comfortable.

Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow, but didn't comment. "I admit that I thought you were a traitor before,"

"I believe '_treasonous scum_' was the exact phrasing you used." Kakashi winced at the recollection. Anko wanted to see him squirm.

"If you would let me continue," he said quickly, "my sensei told me I was wrong to have said those things, and I even spoke with Lord Hokage about you – he told me that you were a good person. I didn't believe either of them until,"

Anko knew where he was going. "Until that Uchiha kid died."

"Yes," a flash of sorrow passed through his visible eye, "and I finally understood the importance of my comrades. Ever since then, I've tried to mend things between us."

Anko begrudgingly thought back to some of her past encounters with Kakashi. She noted that he'd approach with a lazy greeting, not at all like the sanctimonious ninja he used to be. Most of the time, she would storm off after insulting him, and others she would chase him off with knives in her hands. Still, she admired his persistence. It was incredibly vexing, trying to maintain a raging anathema for someone who was trying so hard to get on her good side. "That still doesn't explain why you're telling me this now, besides the fact I feel too sluggish to move. You could have easily put me under a genjutsu to make me sit still."

Kakashi shook his head. "I know you'd hate me more if I did that. I'm telling you this now because now that you've used the mark,"

"I'm evil now?"

"Anko," he said with a tired look, "please don't interrupt me. I admit that before I believed that your curse mark was only capable of corrupting your mind and body – and I think it can – but you didn't use it for evil, or even for a lust for power."

She rolled her eyes. _Thanks for realizing that, _she thought to herself.

"You used the chakra it supplied to save us."

"Well duh! What else was I gonna do with it?" Anko exclaimed, astounded at how slow the Copy Ninja was being. However, she finally remembered the emotion in Kakashi's eyes when she saved him and Kurenai – respect.

"I was wrong to doubt your loyalty to the village."

"Damn straight you were!" At least now he knew that he had been at fault.

"Right. With that out of the way, I have something you need to promise me."

Anko gave him an incredulous look. _Just who does he think he is? _Though she was…touched by his apology, she didn't feel inclined to let him have the satisfaction of knowing. "I don't have to promise anything to you."

He moved closer, the space between them growing tense with awkwardness. "Anko, I'm not joking around." His voice was quiet, but serious.

The violet haired kunoichi was suddenly faced with an internal conflict – she didn't know if she wanted to back away further onto the bed, punch him in the face, or close the distance between them. _Whoa, whoa, wait! What? I don't wanna kiss the guy! _"Hey! Stay back!" she tried to keep her tone commanding.

Kakashi stayed put, taking advantage of her discomfort. "You need to give your word that you'll never use that curse mark again."

Anko didn't understand why he was asking such a thing. She never intended to use it, but the situation had been dire enough that she was left no other option. "I controlled it back there, besides, what if you guys,"

"No." he said. "Promise me that if this happens again, you'll sacrifice me over using the curse mark."

A bunch of snarky comebacks arose in her head, but Anko had a feeling Kakashi would not take it well. "Fine, I promise."

"Swear on your honor."

"Oh, so I have honor now do I?" Anko couldn't help but say it. "Why are you so caught up in this? Why are you wound up about _my _well-being?"

"Because I won't allow another comrade to die for my sake." His words weighed heavily on Anko. _Wow, that Uchiha guy's death must have changed him _she thought.

"I guess I can't go recklessly into battle now. Drat."

Kakashi sighed, still in close proximity to Anko's face. "Why are you being so difficult?"

"I am not!"

"Then swear you won't use that mark again."

For a while, the two ninjas stared at each other - Anko defiant, and Kakashi with a low-burning intensity that Anko found oddly attractive. She could play this game for ages. "And you're serious about this whole comrade thing? You're not blowing smoke up my,"

"Yes, I'm very serious." He replied with the same patience from the beginning of their conversation, despite Anko's attempts to rattle him - to see if he was faking it.

"Oh." Anko couldn't bring herself to keep despising him. He was going out on a limb to make things right between them, even though they hadn't been friends beforehand. Then she remembered how he'd killed the mutant that attacked her. He could have let the thing finish her off, left her to fight for herself, but he didn't. Kakashi even tried to keep her safe by telling her not to continue on, which greatly annoyed her, but still. At first, Anko believed that she'd only saved Kakashi out of obligation (and to get him back for being the hero), but the more she mulled it over, she came to the conclusion that she _wanted_ to protect him. Maybe it was out of spite for what he'd said four years before, or maybe it was because deep down, she'd saved him because it would mean he would _have_ to see that she was loyal to the village and her comrades.

Kakashi exhaled heavily, leaning back into his chair. He moved to get up.

"Wait."

"Hm?"

"I promise I won't use the curse mark again."

There was a long silence between them. Kakashi walked back to the bedside. "Good. I'll take my leave, then. Get well, Anko."

A strange idea popped into Anko's head. "Wait!" Kakashi gave her his attention. "It's rude to leave when someone's trying to talk to you, ya know."

"What did you need to say?" He asked lightly.

Anko didn't know why, but she having a hard time saying it. "Do you…do you think we can start over?" an embarrassed blush rose to her face. She hated when that happened. It was so _girly_!

Kakashi cocked his head curiously. "Start over?"

"Yeah, you know…pretend all of that stuff never happened."

He seemed astonished behind his mask. "If you want, I guess we could,"

"Great! You can pick me up after I get out of here."

"Um, what?"

/

The next day, Anko was discharged from the hospital. She lounged around in the waiting area, taking Kakashi's habit of arriving extremely late into account. Finally, an hour after her official dismissal, the silver haired shinobi appeared. "You're late."

Kakashi scratched the back of his head, smiling hesitantly beneath his mask. "There was a little old lady who needed help with her gardening, you see, and,"

"Ah, be quiet." Anko muttered, getting up from the seat she had occupied for the past hour. "Let's go."

/

They ended up walking through the Shopping District, browsing the various shops and booths the bustling market provided. Kakashi seemed to be impartial to any one store, only requesting that they not eat sweet things. That did not sit well with Anko at all. _I'll get him to like sweet things, heh! _She thought deviously, admiring the view she was getting from where she was standing – behind Kakashi as he leaned over to inspect a little trinket. She always thought the Copy Ninja was rather attractive… not that she would have admitted it to herself or anyone else before.

"Like what you see?" Kakashi stood upright and faced her, amusement dancing in his visible eye.

"Please, don't flatter yourself." Anko snickered.

"Oh? I must have been mistaken when I thought I saw you looking at my behind during our mission."

_Damn, he's good! _"Yep! Completely wrong – I think you need to do more squats. You still avoiding Gai? Maybe you should train with him more often."

Kakashi just stared at her lazily, which unnerved Anko. "So how are we going to start this 'starting over' process?"

Anko fake pouted. "Are you that eager to get away from me?"

The other teen was taken aback. "I didn't say that,"

"Good!" Anko smacked him on the behind and walked ahead a few steps, "we'll see how today goes and go from there." She turned back, a devilish smirk played on her lips. "Hmm, your ass isn't so sorry after all."

He came up behind her. "I'm glad you think so." He whispered, his tone sending a different sort of shivers down Anko's spine.


End file.
